Writer: Kansas State’s Collin Klein ‘plans on going out with a bang, and the Longhorns won’t get in the way’

The last time Collin Klein and the Wildcats took the field, they were easily handled by a 4-5 Baylor team, blown out, 52-24, with their hopes of winning the program’s first national title lost.

Kansas State has had two weeks to let the lessons of that loss settle in and prepare for the opportunity to redeem itself from that crushing defeat. The Wildcats face a Longhorns team that hasn’t won in Manhattan in a decade, a big reason why they are favored by double digits this weekend.

It’s also a reason why Klein, who struggled in that loss to Baylor when his chances of winning a Heisman Trophy also slipped away, will bounce back in a big way against Texas, according to Bleacher Report’s Bill Pevitz.

“Klein plans on going out with a bang, and won’t the Longhorns get in the way,” Pevitz wrote. “Texas has been unable to stop high-powered offenses all season. Against the top three scoring teams in the Big 12 — Oklahoma State, Baylor and Oklahoma — the Longhorns defense allowed an average 49.7 points. This week will be another tough offense for the Longhorns to handle. The Longhorns have lost four straight to Kansas State with the last two being led by Collin Klein. If Klein wants to make a final impact for his case at the Heisman trophy, he needs to put up huge numbers against Texas, and this seems very likely.”

If last November’s 17-13 win over Texas in Austin is any indication, Klein won’t have a big day against the Longhorns. He completed just nine of 17 passes in that victory while running for just four yards on 26 carries. Klein did score twice, once through the air and once on the ground, but his numbers were unimpressive.

But the 6-foot-5, 226-pound quarterback wasn’t leading a team coming off a loss or a bye week last year.